168 episodes

Through an audio drama, episodes of thought-provoking conversations and bonus recordings, the listening audience can learn some of the issues that the adoption community face from the perspective of the adoptee.

Once Upon A Time...In Adopteeland Jennifer Dyan Ghoston

    • Society & Culture
    • 5.0 • 1 Rating

Through an audio drama, episodes of thought-provoking conversations and bonus recordings, the listening audience can learn some of the issues that the adoption community face from the perspective of the adoptee.

    168. Monica Hall: "Practically Still a Virgin"

    168. Monica Hall: "Practically Still a Virgin"

    Monica Hall was born in Canada, adopted by American parents, and raised in Anchorage, Alaska. Growing up in a house filled with dysfunction, Monica rebelled against her strict Catholic parents in a downward spiral of delinquency. After being raped and finding out she was pregnant, her parents pushed her to up give her daughter–her only known blood relative– for adoption. Her experiences as an adoptee and a mother who relinquished a child for adoption kicked off a decades-long search for family and belonging. Over the course of 44 years, Monica got sober, embarked on a journey of self-discovery and self-love, and found ways to come out the other side stronger than ever.
    After being reunited with her biological family, Monica learned that she was indigenous and began traveling to Canada to connect more with her biological family, roots, and culture. She also makes frequent visits to Anchorage, the land of her youth.
    Family is one of the most important things in Monica’s life. Today, she has strong relationships with her daughter and son, as well as the daughter she was reunited with eighteen years after relinquishing her for adoption. She is also very close to her grandchildren and (adoptive) brother.
    Website: https://www.monicahall.com/
    Music by Corey Quinn

    • 45 min
    167. Marilyn Mendenhall Waugh: "A Search Angel"

    167. Marilyn Mendenhall Waugh: "A Search Angel"

    Marilyn Mendenhall Waugh is the Director of Adoption Concerns Triangle of Topeka, a search and support group serving those in Northeastern Kansas, and past president of the American Adoption Congress. She is a frequent conference presenter on ethical search and reunion techniques. For the past 28 years, Marilyn has volunteered in the Post Adoption Services of the Kansas Division for Children and Families and was presented their 2014 Kansas Service Award.
    "Four Birthmothers-For Mothers", a film by Jean Strauss https://vimeo.com/119964199?fbclid=IwAR1trqaG6l_KmBuo5zTPJgEGz0G97OAGefedo7jgXHs8HZtLI_NgBRm0LWo
    https://adopteesunited.org/

    • 54 min
    166. Melissa Brunetti: "Mind Your Own Karma: The Adoption Chronicles"

    166. Melissa Brunetti: "Mind Your Own Karma: The Adoption Chronicles"

    Melissa Brunetti is a domestic adoptee from the baby scoop era and even though she had what she calls a 'good adoption with great adoptive parents' that doesn't mean she doesn't still have scars from her relinquishment. She says that she sees her healing journey as a gift that has shown her hidden treasures among the trauma. Melissa is the podcast host of Mind Your Own Karma The Adoption Chronicles and is a Somatic Mindful Guided Imagery Practitioner which is a newly emerging and highly effective somatic modality that can heal trauma of all kinds. She hopes her story gives you hope, encouragement and a feeling of community.
    Podcast: www.mindyourownkarma.com
    Website: https://www.somatichealingjourneys.com/
    Music by Corey Quinn
     

    • 47 min
    165. Kelsey Vander Vliet Ranyard: "Part 2; Birth Parents Unfiltered"

    165. Kelsey Vander Vliet Ranyard: "Part 2; Birth Parents Unfiltered"

    Kelsey Vander Vliet Ranyard is a birth mother who has spent several years working in the adoption field—both as a paralegal on the West Coast and in adoption agencies in the Midwest and East Coast. Kelsey is the fourth generation in her family to relinquish a child for adoption and her whole life has been uniquely impacted by adoption as a result. She earned her undergraduate degree from South Dakota State University and is currently pursuing a Master of Public Administration from the University of North Carolina at Pembroke. Kelsey is the Director of Advocacy and Policy at Ethical Family Building where she works on important public policy issues impacting the adoption triad and adoption professionals. She is co-producer of an upcoming documentary, Love, Your Birth Mom, and co-author of Adoption Unfiltered: Revelations from Adoptees, Birth Parents, and Adoptive Parents, publishing in December 2023. Kelsey resides in Northern California with her husband and daughter..
    Kelsey is now the Director of Advocacy and Policy at AdoptMatch in California.
    Adoption Unfiltered: Revelations from Adoptees, Birth Parents and Allies on Amazon.com
    Podcast: https://www.twistedsisterhoodpodcast.com/
    Music by Corey Quinn

    • 45 min
    164. Tara Griffith: "Navigating Adoption"

    164. Tara Griffith: "Navigating Adoption"

    Tara Griffith is an adoptee, adopted at the age of 13, through an open kinship adoption. She is a birth mother of almost 18 years in an open adoption. Tara is a licensed clinical social worker in the state of Florida who has spent the last 14 years working in the field of adoptions. She opened a DCF licensed adoption home study agency in 2021 in hopes that she could better be able to educate adoptive families pre and post adoption regarding the importance of always remaining adoptee centered and regarding the nuances that develop as a child lives outside of their family of origin. Tara provides adoption competent therapy to all members of the adoption constellation. As well, she provides adoption education consultations for families, agencies and attorneys.
    https://savinggraceadoptionservices.com/
    https://www.rootedinadoption.com/
    Music by Corey Quinn

    • 39 min
    163. Sara Easterly: "Part 1; Adoptees Unfiltered"

    163. Sara Easterly: "Part 1; Adoptees Unfiltered"

    Sara Easterly is an award-winning author and essayist. Her latest book, Adoption Unfiltered (Rowman & Littlefield, Dec 2023), is a collaboration with birth parent Kelsey Vander Vliet Ranyard and adoptive parent Lori Holden. Her spiritual memoir, Searching for Mom, won a 2020 Illumination Book Award gold medal, among many others. Sara’s adoption-focused articles and essays have been published by Psychology Today, Dear Adoption, Feminine Collective, Her View from Home, Red Letter Christians, and Severance Magazine, to name a few. Sara is Founder of Adoptee Voices and previously led one of the largest chapters of the Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators (SCBWI), where she was recognized as SCBWI Member of the Year. She is a trained facilitator and staff member with the Neufeld Institute.
    Sara resides outside of Seattle with her husband, two daughters, and a menagerie of rescued fur-babies. As an adoptee, she has a passion for helping others understand the often-misunderstood hearts of adopted children.
    Find her online at https://saraeasterly.com/ https://adoptee-voices.com/
    Adoption Unfiltered: Revelations from Adoptees, Birth parents, Adoptive Parents, and Allies available on Amazon.com: https://www.amazon.com/Adoption-Unfiltered-Revelations-Adoptees-Adoptive/dp/1538174693/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3CEMXIV5XIDQL&keywords=adoption+unfiltered&qid=1706624058&sprefix=%2Caps%2C105&sr=8-1
    Searching For Mom: A Memoir available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Searching-Mom-Memoir-Sara-Easterly/dp/0578601958/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3T8RJV7GXFQAK&keywords=searching+for+mom+sara+easterly&qid=1706624112&sprefix=sara+easter%2Caps%2C113&sr=8-1
    Music by Corey Quinn

    • 56 min

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